Method for triggering a buffer status reporting in dual connectivity and a device therefor

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to a wireless communication system. More specifically, the present invention relates to a method and a device for triggering a buffer status reporting in dual connectivity, the method comprising: configuring a threshold value for a PDCPentity associated with a first MAC entity for a first eNB and a second MAC entity for a second eNB for a radio bearer; checking, by the PDCP entity, whether an amount of uplink data available for transmission in the PDCP entity is less than the threshold value; and indicating, by the PDCP entity, that the amount of uplink data available for transmission in the PDCP entity is ‘0’ to the second MAC entity, if the amount of uplink data available for transmission in the PDCP entity is less than the threshold value.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Pursuant to 35 U.S.C. §119(e), this application claims the benefit ofU.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/188,746, filed on Jul. 6,2015, the contents of which are all hereby incorporated by referenceherein in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a wireless communication system and,more particularly, to a method for triggering a buffer status reportingin dual connectivity and a device therefor.

Discussion of the Related Art

As an example of a mobile communication system to which the presentinvention is applicable, a 3rd Generation Partnership Project Long TermEvolution (hereinafter, referred to as LTE) communication system isdescribed in brief.

FIG. 1 is a view schematically illustrating a network structure of anE-UMTS as an exemplary radio communication system. An Evolved UniversalMobile Telecommunications System (E-UMTS) is an advanced version of aconventional Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) and basicstandardization thereof is currently underway in the 3GPP. E-UMTS may begenerally referred to as a Long Term Evolution (LTE) system. Details ofthe technical specifications of UMTS and E-UMTS are provided in Release7 and Release 8 of “3rd Generation Partnership Project; TechnicalSpecification Group Radio Access Network”, for example.

Referring to FIG. 1, the E-UMTS includes a User Equipment (UE), eNode Bs(eNBs), and an Access Gateway (AG) which is located at an end of thenetwork (E-UTRAN) and connected to an external network. The eNBs maysimultaneously transmit multiple data streams for a broadcast service, amulticast service, and/or a unicast service.

One or more cells may exist per eNB. The cell is set to operate in oneof bandwidths such as 1.25, 2.5, 5, 10, 15, and 20 MHz and provides adownlink (DL) or uplink (UL) transmission service to a plurality of UEsin the bandwidth. Different cells may be set to provide differentbandwidths. The eNB controls data transmission or reception to and froma plurality of UEs. The eNB transmits DL scheduling information of DLdata to a corresponding UE so as to inform the UE of a time/frequencydomain in which the DL data is supposed to be transmitted, coding, adata size, and hybrid automatic repeat and request (HARQ)-relatedinformation. In addition, the eNB transmits UL scheduling information ofUL data to a corresponding UE so as to inform the UE of a time/frequencydomain which may be used by the UE, coding, a data size, andHARQ-related information. An interface for transmitting user traffic orcontrol traffic may be used between eNBs. A core network (CN) mayinclude the AG and a network node or the like for user registration ofUEs. The AG manages the mobility of a UE on a tracking area (TA) basis.One TA includes a plurality of cells.

Although wireless communication technology has been developed to LTEbased on wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA), the demands andexpectations of users and service providers are on the rise. Inaddition, considering other radio access technologies under development,new technological evolution is required to secure high competitivenessin the future. Decrease in cost per bit, increase in serviceavailability, flexible use of frequency bands, a simplified structure,an open interface, appropriate power consumption of UEs, and the likeare required.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The object of the present invention can be achieved by providing amethod for User Equipment (UE) operating in a wireless communicationsystem as set forth in the appended claims.

In another aspect of the present invention, provided herein is acommunication apparatus as set forth in the appended claims.

It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description andthe following detailed description of the present invention areexemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide furtherexplanation of the invention as claimed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a furtherunderstanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute apart of this application, illustrate embodiment(s) of the invention andtogether with the description serve to explain the principle of theinvention.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a network structure of an Evolved UniversalMobile Telecommunications System (E-UMTS) as an example of a wirelesscommunication system;

FIG. 2A is a block diagram illustrating network structure of an evolveduniversal mobile telecommunication system (E-UMTS), and FIG. 2B is ablock diagram depicting architecture of a typical E-UTRAN and a typicalEPC;

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a control plane and a user plane of a radiointerface protocol between a UE and an E-UTRAN based on a 3rd generationpartnership project (3GPP) radio access network standard;

FIG. 4 is a diagram of an example physical channel structure used in anE-UMTS system;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a communication apparatus according to anembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a diagram for carrier aggregation;

FIG. 7 is a conceptual diagram for Dual Connectivity (DC) between aMaster Cell Group (MCS) and a Secondary Cell Group (SCG);

FIG. 8 is a conceptual diagram for radio protocol architecture for asplit bearer;

FIG. 9 is a conceptual diagram for a PDCP entity architecture;

FIG. 10 is a conceptual diagram for functional view of a PDCP entity;

FIG.11 is a diagram for MAC structure overview in a UE side;

FIG. 12 is an example of problematic situation for PDCP data indicationto MAC entity in UL split bearer;

FIG. 13 is a conceptual diagram for triggering a buffer status reportingin dual connectivity according to embodiments of the present invention;and

FIG. 14 is an example for triggering a buffer status reporting in dualconnectivity according to embodiments of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS) is a 3rd Generation(3G) asynchronous mobile communication system operating in wideband codedivision multiple access (WCDMA) based on European systems, globalsystem for mobile communications (GSM) and general packet radio services(GPRS). The long-term evolution (LTE) of UMTS is under discussion by the3rd generation partnership project (3GPP) that standardized UMTS.

The 3GPP LTE is a technology for enabling high-speed packetcommunications. Many schemes have been proposed for the LTE objectiveincluding those that aim to reduce user and provider costs, improveservice quality, and expand and improve coverage and system capacity.The 3G LTE requires reduced cost per bit, increased serviceavailability, flexible use of a frequency band, a simple structure, anopen interface, and adequate power consumption of a terminal as anupper-level requirement.

Hereinafter, structures, operations, and other features of the presentinvention will be readily understood from the embodiments of the presentinvention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings. Embodiments described later are examples in which technicalfeatures of the present invention are applied to a 3GPP system.

Although the embodiments of the present invention are described using along term evolution (LTE) system and a LTE-advanced (LTE-A) system inthe present specification, they are purely exemplary. Therefore, theembodiments of the present invention are applicable to any othercommunication system corresponding to the above definition. In addition,although the embodiments of the present invention are described based ona frequency division duplex (FDD) scheme in the present specification,the embodiments of the present invention may be easily modified andapplied to a half-duplex FDD (H-FDD) scheme or a time division duplex(TDD) scheme.

FIG. 2A is a block diagram illustrating network structure of an evolveduniversal mobile telecommunication system (E-UMTS). The E-UMTS may bealso referred to as an LTE system. The communication network is widelydeployed to provide a variety of communication services such as voice(VoIP) through IMS and packet data.

As illustrated in FIG. 2A, the E-UMTS network includes an evolved UMTSterrestrial radio access network (E-UTRAN), an Evolved Packet Core (EPC)and one or more user equipment. The E-UTRAN may include one or moreevolved NodeB (eNodeB) 20, and a plurality of user equipment (UE) 10 maybe located in one cell. One or more E-UTRAN mobility management entity(MME)/system architecture evolution (SAE) gateways 30 may be positionedat the end of the network and connected to an external network.

As used herein, “downlink” refers to communication from eNodeB 20 to UE10, and “uplink” refers to communication from the UE to an eNodeB. UE 10refers to communication equipment carried by a user and may be alsoreferred to as a mobile station (MS), a user terminal (UT), a subscriberstation (SS) or a wireless device.

FIG. 2B is a block diagram depicting architecture of a typical E-UTRANand a typical EPC.

As illustrated in FIG. 2B, an eNodeB 20 provides end points of a userplane and a control plane to the UE 10. MME/SAE gateway 30 provides anend point of a session and mobility management function for UE 10. TheeNodeB and MME/SAE gateway may be connected via an Si interface.

The eNodeB 20 is generally a fixed station that communicates with a UE10, and may also be referred to as a base station (BS) or an accesspoint. One eNodeB 20 may be deployed per cell. An interface fortransmitting user traffic or control traffic may be used between eNodeBs20.

The MME provides various functions including NAS signaling to eNodeBs20, NAS signaling security, AS Security control, Inter CN node signalingfor mobility between 3GPP access networks, Idle mode UE Reachability(including control and execution of paging retransmission), TrackingArea list management (for UE in idle and active mode), PDN GW andServing GW selection, MME selection for handovers with MME change, SGSNselection for handovers to 2G or 3G 3GPP access networks, Roaming,Authentication, Bearer management functions including dedicated bearerestablishment, Support for PWS (which includes ETWS and CMAS) messagetransmission. The SAE gateway host provides assorted functions includingPer-user based packet filtering (by e.g. deep packet inspection), LawfulInterception, UE IP address allocation, Transport level packet markingin the downlink, UL and DL service level charging, gating and rateenforcement, DL rate enforcement based on APN-AMBR. For clarity MME/SAEgateway 30 will be referred to herein simply as a “gateway,” but it isunderstood that this entity includes both an MME and an SAE gateway.

A plurality of nodes may be connected between eNodeB 20 and gateway 30via the S1 interface. The eNodeBs 20 may be connected to each other viaan X2 interface and neighboring eNodeBs may have a meshed networkstructure that has the X2 interface.

As illustrated, eNodeB 20 may perform functions of selection for gateway30, routing toward the gateway during a Radio Resource Control (RRC)activation, scheduling and transmitting of paging messages, schedulingand transmitting of Broadcast Channel (BCCH) information, dynamicallocation of resources to UEs 10 in both uplink and downlink,configuration and provisioning of eNodeB measurements, radio bearercontrol, radio admission control (RAC), and connection mobility controlin LTE_ACTIVE state. In the EPC, and as noted above, gateway 30 mayperform functions of paging origination, LTE-IDLE state management,ciphering of the user plane, System Architecture Evolution (SAE) bearercontrol, and ciphering and integrity protection of Non-Access Stratum(NAS) signaling.

The EPC includes a mobility management entity (MME), a serving-gateway(S-GW), and a packet data network-gateway (PDN-GW). The MME hasinformation about connections and capabilities of UEs, mainly for use inmanaging the mobility of the UEs. The S-GW is a gateway having theE-UTRAN as an end point, and the PDN-GW is a gateway having a packetdata network (PDN) as an end point.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a control plane and a user plane of a radiointerface protocol between a UE and an E-UTRAN based on a 3GPP radioaccess network standard. The control plane refers to a path used fortransmitting control messages used for managing a call between the UEand the E-UTRAN. The user plane refers to a path used for transmittingdata generated in an application layer, e.g., voice data or Internetpacket data.

A physical (PHY) layer of a first layer provides an information transferservice to a higher layer using a physical channel The PHY layer isconnected to a medium access control (MAC) layer located on the higherlayer via a transport channel. Data is transported between the MAC layerand the PHY layer via the transport channel. Data is transported betweena physical layer of a transmitting side and a physical layer of areceiving side via physical channels. The physical channels use time andfrequency as radio resources. In detail, the physical channel ismodulated using an orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA)scheme in downlink and is modulated using a single carrier frequencydivision multiple access (SC-FDMA) scheme in uplink.

The MAC layer of a second layer provides a service to a radio linkcontrol (RLC) layer of a higher layer via a logical channel The RLClayer of the second layer supports reliable data transmission. Afunction of the RLC layer may be implemented by a functional block ofthe MAC layer. A packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer of thesecond layer performs a header compression function to reduceunnecessary control information for efficient transmission of anInternet protocol (IP) packet such as an IP version 4 (IPv4) packet oran IP version 6 (IPv6) packet in a radio interface having a relativelysmall bandwidth.

A radio resource control (RRC) layer located at the bottom of a thirdlayer is defined only in the control plane. The RRC layer controlslogical channels, transport channels, and physical channels in relationto configuration, re-configuration, and release of radio bearers (RBs).An RB refers to a service that the second layer provides for datatransmission between the UE and the E-UTRAN. To this end, the RRC layerof the UE and the RRC layer of the E-UTRAN exchange RRC messages witheach other.

One cell of the eNB is set to operate in one of bandwidths such as 1.25,2.5, 5, 10, 15, and 20 MHz and provides a downlink or uplinktransmission service to a plurality of UEs in the bandwidth. Differentcells may be set to provide different bandwidths.

Downlink transport channels for transmission of data from the E-UTRAN tothe UE include a broadcast channel (BCH) for transmission of systeminformation, a paging channel (PCH) for transmission of paging messages,and a downlink shared channel (SCH) for transmission of user traffic orcontrol messages. Traffic or control messages of a downlink multicast orbroadcast service may be transmitted through the downlink SCH and mayalso be transmitted through a separate downlink multicast channel (MCH).

Uplink transport channels for transmission of data from the UE to theE-UTRAN include a random access channel (RACH) for transmission ofinitial control messages and an uplink SCH for transmission of usertraffic or control messages. Logical channels that are defined above thetransport channels and mapped to the transport channels include abroadcast control channel (BCCH), a paging control channel (PCCH), acommon control channel (CCCH), a multicast control channel (MCCH), and amulticast traffic channel (MTCH).

FIG. 4 is a view showing an example of a physical channel structure usedin an E-UMTS system. A physical channel includes several subframes on atime axis and several subcarriers on a frequency axis. Here, onesubframe includes a plurality of symbols on the time axis. One subframeincludes a plurality of resource blocks and one resource block includesa plurality of symbols and a plurality of subcarriers. In addition, eachsubframe may use certain subcarriers of certain symbols (e.g., a firstsymbol) of a subframe for a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH),that is, an L1/L2 control channel. In FIG. 4, an L1/L2 controlinformation transmission area (PDCCH) and a data area (PDSCH) are shown.In one embodiment, a radio frame of 10 ms is used and one radio frameincludes 10 subframes. In addition, one subframe includes twoconsecutive slots. The length of one slot may be 0.5 ms. In addition,one subframe includes a plurality of OFDM symbols and a portion (e.g., afirst symbol) of the plurality of OFDM symbols may be used fortransmitting the L1/L2 control information. A transmission time interval(TTI) which is a unit time for transmitting data is 1 ms.

A base station and a UE mostly transmit/receive data via a PDSCH, whichis a physical channel, using a DL-SCH which is a transmission channel,except a certain control signal or certain service data. Informationindicating to which UE (one or a plurality of UEs) PDSCH data istransmitted and how the UE receive and decode PDSCH data is transmittedin a state of being included in the PDCCH.

For example, in one embodiment, a certain PDCCH is CRC-masked with aradio network temporary identity (RNTI) “A” and information about datais transmitted using a radio resource “B” (e.g., a frequency location)and transmission format information “C” (e.g., a transmission blocksize, modulation, coding information or the like) via a certainsubframe. Then, one or more UEs located in a cell monitor the PDCCHusing its RNTI information. And, a specific UE with RNTI “A” reads thePDCCH and then receive the PDSCH indicated by B and C in the PDCCHinformation.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a communication apparatus according to anembodiment of the present invention.

The apparatus shown in FIG. 5 can be a user equipment (UE) and/or eNBadapted to perform the above mechanism, but it can be any apparatus forperforming the same operation.

As shown in FIG. 5, the apparatus may comprises a DSP/microprocessor(110) and RF module (transmiceiver; 135). The DSP/microprocessor (110)is electrically connected with the transciver (135) and controls it. Theapparatus may further include power management module (105), battery(155), display (115), keypad (120), SIM card (125), memory device (130),speaker (145) and input device (150), based on its implementation anddesigner's choice.

Specifically, FIG. 5 may represent a UE comprising a receiver (135)configured to receive a request message from a network, and atransmitter (135) configured to transmit the transmission or receptiontiming information to the network. These receiver and the transmittercan constitute the transceiver (135). The UE further comprises aprocessor (110) connected to the transceiver (135: receiver andtransmitter).

Also, FIG. 5 may represent a network apparatus comprising a transmitter(135) configured to transmit a request message to a UE and a receiver(135) configured to receive the transmission or reception timinginformation from the UE. These transmitter and receiver may constitutethe transceiver (135). The network further comprises a processor (110)connected to the transmitter and the receiver. This processor (110) maybe configured to calculate latency based on the transmission orreception timing information.

FIG. 6 is a diagram for carrier aggregation.

Carrier Aggregation (CA) technology for supporting multiple carriers isdescribed with reference to FIG. 6 as follows. As mentioned in theforegoing description, it may be able to support system bandwidth up tomaximum 100 MHz in a manner of bundling maximum 5 carriers (componentcarriers: CCs) of bandwidth unit (e.g., 20 MHz) defined in a legacywireless communication system (e.g., LTE system) by carrier aggregation.Component carriers used for carrier aggregation may be equal to ordifferent from each other in bandwidth size. And, each of the componentcarriers may have a different frequency band (or center frequency). Thecomponent carriers may exist on contiguous frequency bands. Yet,component carriers existing on non-contiguous frequency bands may beused for carrier aggregation as well. In the carrier aggregationtechnology, bandwidth sizes of uplink and downlink may be allocatedsymmetrically or asymmetrically.

When CA is configured, the UE only has one RRC connection with thenetwork. At RRC connection establishment/re-establishment/handover, oneserving cell provides the NAS mobility information (e.g. TAI), and atRRC connection re-establishment/handover, one serving cell provides thesecurity input. This cell is referred to as the Primary Cell (PCell). Inthe downlink, the carrier corresponding to the PCell is the DownlinkPrimary Component Carrier (DL PCC) while in the uplink it is the UplinkPrimary Component Carrier (UL PCC).

Depending on UE capabilities, Secondary Cells (SCells) can be configuredto form together with the PCell a set of serving cells. In the downlink,the carrier corresponding to a SCell is a Downlink Secondary ComponentCarrier (DL SCC) while in the uplink it is an Uplink Secondary ComponentCarrier (UL SCC).

The primary component carrier is the carrier used by a base station toexchange traffic and control signaling with a user equipment. In thiscase, the control signaling may include addition of component carrier,setting for primary component carrier, uplink (UL) grant, downlink (DL)assignment and the like. Although a base station may be able to use aplurality of component carriers, a user equipment belonging to thecorresponding base station may be set to have one primary componentcarrier only. If a user equipment operates in a single carrier mode, theprimary component carrier is used. Hence, in order to be independentlyused, the primary component carrier should be set to meet allrequirements for the data and control signaling exchange between a basestation and a user equipment.

Meanwhile, the secondary component carrier may include an additionalcomponent carrier that can be activated or deactivated in accordancewith a required size of transceived data. The secondary componentcarrier may be set to be used only in accordance with a specific commandand rule received from a base station. In order to support an additionalbandwidth, the secondary component carrier may be set to be usedtogether with the primary component carrier. Through an activatedcomponent carrier, such a control signal as a UL grant, a DL assignmentand the like can be received by a user equipment from a base station.Through an activated component carrier, such a control signal in UL as achannel quality indicator (CQI), a precoding matrix index (PMI), a rankindicator (RI), a sounding reference signal (SRS) and the like can betransmitted to a base station from a user equipment.

Resource allocation to a user equipment can have a range of a primarycomponent carrier and a plurality of secondary component carriers. In amulti-carrier aggregation mode, based on a system load (i.e.,static/dynamic load balancing), a peak data rate or a service qualityrequirement, a system may be able to allocate secondary componentcarriers to DL and/or UL asymmetrically. In using the carrieraggregation technology, the setting of the component carriers may beprovided to a user equipment by a base station after RRC connectionprocedure. In this case, the RRC connection may mean that a radioresource is allocated to a user equipment based on RRC signalingexchanged between an RRC layer of the user equipment and a network viaSRB. After completion of the RRC connection procedure between the userequipment and the base station, the user equipment may be provided bythe base station with the setting information on the primary componentcarrier and the secondary component carrier. The setting information onthe secondary component carrier may include addition/deletion (oractivation/deactivation) of the secondary component carrier. Therefore,in order to activate a secondary component carrier between a basestation and a user equipment or deactivate a previous secondarycomponent carrier, it may be necessary to perform an exchange of RRCsignaling and MAC control element.

The configured set of serving cells for a UE therefore always consistsof one PCell and one or more SCells: i) for each SCell the usage ofuplink resources by the UE in addition to the downlink ones isconfigurable (the number of DL SCCs configured is therefore alwayslarger than or equal to the number of UL SCCs and no SCell can beconfigured for usage of uplink resources only); ii) from a UE viewpoint,each uplink resource only belongs to one serving cell; iii) the numberof serving cells that can be configured depends on the aggregationcapability of the UE; iv) PCell can only be changed with handoverprocedure (i.e. with security key change and RACH procedure); v) PCellis used for transmission of PUCCH; vi) Unlike SCells, PCell cannot bede-activated; vii) Re-establishment is triggered when PCell experiencesRLF, not when SCells experience RLF; and viii) NAS information is takenfrom PCell.

The activation or deactivation of the secondary component carrier may bedetermined by a base station based on a quality of service (QoS), a loadcondition of carrier and other factors. And, the base station may beable to instruct a user equipment of secondary component carrier settingusing a control message including such information as an indication type(activation/deactivation) for DL/UL, a secondary component carrier listand the like.

The reconfiguration, addition and removal of SCells can be performed byRRC. At intra-LTE handover, RRC can also add, remove, or reconfigureSCells for usage with the target PCell. When adding a new SCell,dedicated RRC signaling is used for sending all required systeminformation of the SCell i.e. while in connected mode, UEs need notacquire broadcasted system information directly from the SCells.

FIG. 7 is a conceptual diagram for Dual Connectivity (DC) between aMaster Cell Group (MCS) and a Secondary Cell Group (SCG).

The Dual Connectivity (DC) means that the UE can be connected to both aMaster eNode-B (MeNB) and a Secondary eNode-B (SeNB) at the same time.The MCG is a group of serving cells associated with the MeNB, comprisingof a PCell and optionally one or more SCells. And the SCG is a group ofserving cells associated with the SeNB, comprising of the special SCelland optionally one or more SCells. The MeNB is an eNB which terminatesat least S1-MME (S1 for the control plane) and the SeNB is an eNB thatis providing additional radio resources for the UE but is not the MeNB.

The Dual Connectivity is a kind of carrier aggregation in that the UE isconfigured a plurality serving cells. However, unlike all serving cellssupporting carrier aggregation of FIG. 6 are served by a same eNB, allserving cells supporting dual connectivity of FIG. 7 are served bydifferent eNBs, respectively at same time. The different eNBs areconnected via non-ideal backhaul interface because the UE is connectedwith the different eNBs at same time.

With Dual Connectivity, some of the data radio bearers (DRBs) can beoffloaded to the SCG to provide high throughput while keeping schedulingradio bearers (SRBs) or other DRBs in the MCG to reduce the handoverpossibility. The MCG is operated by the MeNB via the frequency of f1,and the SCG is operated by the SeNB via the frequency of f2. Thefrequency f1 and f2 may be equal. The backhaul interface (BH) betweenthe MeNB and the SeNB is non-ideal (e.g. X2 interface), which means thatthere is considerable delay in the backhaul and therefore thecentralized scheduling in one node is not possible.

For SCG, the following principles are applied: i) at least one cell inSCG has a configured UL CC and one of them, named PSCell, is configuredwith PUCCH resources; ii) RRC connection Re-establishment procedure isnot triggered; iii) for split bearer, the DL data transfer over the MeNBis maintained; iv) PSCell cannot be de-activated; and v) PSCell can onlybe changed with SCG change (i.e. with security key change and RACHprocedure).

With respect to the interaction between MeNB and SeNB, the followingprinciples are applied: i) the MeNB maintains the RRM measurementconfiguration of the UE and may, e.g., based on received measurementreports or traffic conditions or bearer types, decide to ask a SeNB toprovide additional resources (serving cells) for a UE; ii) uponreceiving the request from the MeNB, a SeNB may create the containerthat will result in the configuration of additional serving cells forthe UE (or decide that it has no resource available to do so); iii) forUE capability coordination, the MeNB provides (part of) the ASconfiguration and the UE capabilities to the SeNB; iv) the MeNB and theSeNB exchange information about UE configuration by means of RRCcontainers (inter-node messages) carried in X2 messages; v) the SeNB mayinitiate a reconfiguration of its existing serving cells (e.g., PUCCHtowards the SeNB); vi) the SeNB decides which cell is the PSCell withinthe SCG; and vii) the MeNB does not change the content of the RRCconfiguration provided by the SeNB.

FIG. 8 is a conceptual diagram for radio protocol architecture for asplit bearer.

In the dual connectivity operation, the radio protocol architecture thata particular bearer uses depends on how the bearer is setup. Threealternatives exist, MCG bearer, split bearer and SCG bearer. Those threealternatives are depicted on FIG. 8. The SRBs (Signaling Radio Bearers)are always of the MCG bearer and therefore only use the radio resourcesprovided by the MeNB. The MCG bearer is a radio protocol only located inthe MeNB to use MeNB resources only in the dual connectivity. And theSCG bearer is a radio protocol only located in the SeNB to use SeNBresources in the dual connectivity.

Specially, the split bearer is a radio protocol located in both the MeNBand the SeNB to use both MeNB and SeNB resources in the dualconnectivity and the split bearer may be a radio bearer comprising onePacket Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) entity, two Radio Link Control(RLC) entities and two Medium Access Control (MAC) entities for onedirection. Specially, the dual connectivity operation can also bedescribed as having at least one bearer configured to use radioresources provided by the SeNB.

The functions of the different MAC entities in the UE operateindependently in principle. The timers and paramenters used in each MACentity are configured independently in principle. The Serving Cells,C-RNTI, radio bearers, logical channels, upper and lower layer entities,LCGs, and HARQ entities considered by each MAC entity refer to thosemapped to that MAC entity if not otherwise indicated. Exceptively, ifotherwise indicated, the different MAC entities can be performeddependently.

The expected benefits of the split bearer are: i) the SeNB mobilityhidden to CN, ii) no security impacts with ciphering being required inMeNB only, iii) no data forwarding between SeNBs required at SeNBchange, iv) offloads RLC processing of SeNB traffic from MeNB to SeNB,v) little or no impacts to RLC, vi) utilization of radio resourcesacross MeNB and SeNB for the same bearer possible, vii) relaxedrequirements for SeNB mobility (MeNB can be used in the meantime).

Meanwhile, in LTE-WLAN radio level integration, the radio protocolarchitecture that a particular bearer uses depends on the LWA backhaulscenario and how the bearer is set up. For the LTE-WLAN radio levelintegration, similar architecture as dual connectivity can be used. Theonly change is to replace SeNB by WLAN. Thus, all functions depending onthe split bearer can be applied on all technical areas to be used thesplit bearer. For example, if a structure of the split bearer is appliedin a new RAT to be used in 5G network, the all functions depending onthe split bearer can be applied on the new RAT. FIG. 9 is a conceptualdiagram for a PDCP entity architecture.

FIG. 9 represents one possible structure for the PDCP sublayer, but itshould not restrict implementation. Each RB (i.e. DRB and SRB, exceptfor SRB0) is associated with one PDCP entity. Each PDCP entity isassociated with one or two (one for each direction) RLC entitiesdepending on the RB characteristic (i.e. unidirectional orbi-directional) and RLC mode. The PDCP entities are located in the PDCPsublayer. The PDCP sublayer is configured by upper layers.

FIG. 10 is a conceptual diagram for functional view of a PDCP entity.

The PDCP entities are located in the PDCP sublayer. Several PDCPentities may be defined for a UE. Each PDCP entity carrying user planedata may be configured to use header compression. Each PDCP entity iscarrying the data of one radio bearer. In this version of thespecification, only the robust header compression protocol (ROHC), issupported. Every PDCP entity uses at most one ROHC compressor instanceand at most one ROHC decompressor instance. A PDCP entity is associatedeither to the control plane or the user plane depending on which radiobearer it is carrying data for.

FIG. 10 represents the functional view of the PDCP entity for the PDCPsublayer, it should not restrict implementation. The figure is based onthe radio interface protocol architecture.

For split bearers, routing is performed in the transmitting PDCP entity,and reordering is performed in the receiving PDCP entity.

When submitting PDCP PDUs to lower layers, the transmitting PDCP entityshall submit the PDCP PDUs to the associated AM RLC entity configuredfor SCG if ul-DataSplitDRB-ViaSCG is set to TRUE by upper layers. And ifelse, the transmitting PDCP entity shall submit the PDCP PDUs to theassociated AM RLC entity configured for MCG.

Here, the ul-DataSplitDRB-ViaSCG indicates that whether the UE shallsend PDCP PDUs via SCG. E-UTRAN only configures the field (i.e.indicates value TRUE) for split DRBs.

Data Available for Transmission in PDCP Entity

For the purpose of MAC buffer status reporting, the UE may consider PDCPControl PDUs, as well as the following as data available fortransmission in the PDCP layer, for SDUs for which no PDU has beensubmitted to lower layers: i) the SDU itself, if the SDU has not yetbeen processed by PDCP, or ii) the PDU if the SDU has been processed byPDCP.

In addition, for radio bearers that are mapped on RLC AM, if the PDCPentity has previously performed the re-establishment procedure, the UEmay also consider the following as data available for transmission inthe PDCP layer, for SDUs for which a corresponding PDU has only beensubmitted to lower layers prior to the PDCP re-establishment, startingfrom the first SDU for which the delivery of the corresponding PDUs hasnot been confirmed by the lower layer, except the SDUs which areindicated as successfully delivered by the PDCP status report, ifreceived: i) the SDU, if it has not yet been processed by PDCP, or ii)the PDU once it has been processed by PDCP.

For split bearers, when indicating the data available for transmissionto the MAC entity for BSR triggering and Buffer Size calculation, the UEshall indicate the data available for transmission to the MAC entityconfigured for SCG only if ul-DataSplitDRB-ViaSCG is set to TRUE by theupper layer. And if else, the UE shall indicate the data available fortransmission to the MAC entity configured for MCG only.

FIG. 11 is a diagram for MAC structure overview in a UE side.

The MAC layer handles logical-channel multiplexing, hybrid-ARQretransmissions, and uplink and downlink scheduling. It is alsoresponsible for multiplexing/demultiplexing data across multiplecomponent carriers when carrier aggregation is used.

The MAC provides services to the RLC in the form of logical channels. Alogical channel is defined by the type of information it carries and isgenerally classified as a control channel, used for transmission ofcontrol and configuration information necessary for operating an LTEsystem, or as a traffic channel, used for the user data. The set oflogical-channel types specified for LTE includes:

The Broadcast Control Channel (BCCH), used for transmission of systeminformation from the network to all terminals in a cell. Prior toaccessing the system, a terminal needs to acquire the system informationto find out how the system is configured and, in general, how to behaveproperly within a cell.

The Paging Control Channel (PCCH), used for paging of terminals whoselocation on a cell level is not known to the network. The paging messagetherefore needs to be transmitted in multiple cells.

The Common Control Channel (CCCH), used for transmission of controlinformation in conjunction with random access.

The Dedicated Control Channel (DCCH), used for transmission of controlinformation to/from a terminal. This channel is used for individualconfiguration of terminals such as different handover messages.

The Multicast Control Channel (MCCH), used for transmission of controlinformation required for reception of the MTCH.

The Dedicated Traffic Channel (DTCH), used for transmission of user datato/from a terminal. This is the logical channel type used fortransmission of all uplink and non-MBSFN downlink user data.

The Multicast Traffic Channel (MTCH), used for downlink transmission ofMBMS services.

To support priority handling, multiple logical channels, where eachlogical channel has its own RLC entity, can be multiplexed into onetransport channel by the MAC layer. At the receiver, the MAC layerhandles the corresponding demultiplexing and forwards the RLC PDUs totheir respective RLC entity for in-sequence delivery and the otherfunctions handled by the RLC. To support the demultiplexing at thereceiver, a MAC is used. To each RLC PDU, there is an associatedsub-header in the MAC header. The sub-header contains the identity ofthe logical channel (LCID) from which the RLC PDU originated and thelength of the PDU in bytes. There is also a flag indicating whether thisis the last sub-header or not. One or several RLC PDUs, together withthe MAC header and, if necessary, padding to meet the scheduledtransport-block size, form one transport block which is forwarded to thephysical layer.

In addition to multiplexing of different logical channels, the MAC layercan also insert the so-called MAC control elements into the transportblocks to be transmitted over the transport channels. A MAC controlelement is used for inband control signaling—for example, timing-advancecommands and random-access response. Control elements are identifiedwith reserved values in the LCID field, where the LCID value indicatesthe type of control information. Furthermore, the length field in thesub-header is removed for control elements with a fixed length.

The MAC multiplexing functionality is also responsible for handling ofmultiple component carriers in the case of carrier aggregation. Thebasic principle for carrier aggregation is independent processing of thecomponent carriers in the physical layer, including control signaling,scheduling and hybrid-ARQ retransmissions, while carrier aggregation isinvisible to RLC and PDCP. Carrier aggregation is therefore mainly seenin the MAC layer, where logical channels, including any MAC controlelements, are multiplexed to form one (two in the case of spatialmultiplexing) transport block(s) per component carrier with eachcomponent carrier having its own hybrid-ARQ entity.

In Dual Connectivity, two MAC entities are configured in the UE: one forthe MCG and one for the SCG. Each MAC entity is configured by RRC with aserving cell supporting PUCCH transmission and contention based RandomAccess. In this specification, the term SpCell refers to such cell,whereas the term SCell refers to other serving cells. The term SpCelleither refers to the PCell of the MCG or the PSCell of the SCG dependingon if the MAC entity is associated to the MCG or the SCG, respectively.A Timing Advance Group containing the SpCell of a MAC entity is referredto as pTAG, whereas the term sTAG refers to other TAGs.

As mentioned above, the functions of the different MAC entities in theUE operate independently in principle. The timers and paramenters usedin each MAC entity are configured independently in principle. TheServing Cells, C-RNTI, radio bearers, logical channels, upper and lowerlayer entities, LCGs, and HARQ entities considered by each MAC entityrefer to those mapped to that MAC entity if not otherwise indicated.Exceptively, if otherwise indicated, the different MAC entities can beperformed dependently.

Meanwhile, UEs that already have a valid grant obviously do not need torequest uplink resources. However, to allow the scheduler to determinethe amount of resources to grant to each terminal in future subframes,information about the buffer situation and the power availability isuseful, as discussed above. This information is provided to thescheduler as part of the uplink transmission through MAC controlelement. The LCID field in one of the MAC subheaders is set to areserved value indicating the presence of a buffer status report.

From a scheduling perspective, buffer information for each logicalchannel is beneficial, although this could result in a significantoverhead. Logical channels are therefore grouped into logical-channelgroups and the reporting is done per group. The buffer-size field in abuffer-status report indicates the amount of data available transmissionacross all logical channels in a logical-channel group.

The Buffer Status Reporting (BSR) procedure is used to provide a servingeNB with information about the amount of data available for transmission(DAT) in the UL buffers of the UE. RRC may control BSR reporting byconfiguring the three timers periodicBSR-Timer and retxBSR-Timer andlogicalChannelSR-ProhibitTimer and by, for each logical channel,optionally signaling Logical Channel Group (LCG) which allocates thelogical channel to an LCG.

A buffer status report represents one or all four logical-channel groupsand can be triggered for the following reasons:

i) Arrival of data with higher priority than currently in thetransmission buffer-that is, data in a logical-channel group with higherpriority than the one currently being transmitted-as this may impact thescheduling decision. The UL data, for a logical channel which belongs toa LCG, becomes available for transmission in the RLC entity or in thePDCP entity and either the data belongs to a logical channel with higherpriority than the priorities of the logical channels which belong to anyLCG and for which data is already available for transmission, or thereis no data available for transmission for any of the logical channelswhich belong to a LCG, in which case the BSR is referred below to as“Regular BSR”.

ii) Change of serving cell, in which case a buffer-status report isuseful to provide the new serving cell with information about thesituation in the terminal.

iii) Periodically as controlled by a timer. A retxBSR-Timer expires andthe UE has data available for transmission for any of the logicalchannels which belong to a LCG, in which case the BSR is referred belowto as “Regular BSR”, or a periodicBSR-Timer expires, in which case theBSR is referred below to as “Periodic BSR”.

iv) UL resources are allocated and number of padding bits is equal to orlarger than the size of the Buffer Status Report MAC control elementplus its subheader, in which case the BSR is referred below to as“Padding BSR”. If the amount of padding required to match the scheduledtransport block size is larger than a buffer-status report, abuffer-status report is inserted. Clearly it is better to exploit theavailable payload for useful scheduling information instead of paddingif possible.

For Regular BSR, if the BSR is triggered due to data becoming availablefor transmission for a logical channel for whichlogicalChannelSR-ProhibitTimer is configured by upper layers, the MACentity starts the logicalChannelSR-ProhibitTimer if not running Ifrunning, the MAC entity stops the logicalChannelSR-ProhibitTimer.

For Regular and Periodic BSR, if more than one LCG has data availablefor transmission in the TTI where the BSR is transmitted, the UE mayreport Long BSR. If else, the UE may report Short BSR.

If the Buffer Status reporting procedure determines that at least oneBSR has been triggered and not cancelled, if the UE has UL resourcesallocated for new transmission for this TTI, the UE may instruct theMultiplexing and Assembly procedure to generate the BSR MAC controlelement(s), start or restart periodicBSR-Timer except when all thegenerated BSRs are Truncated BSRs, and start or restart retxBSR-Timer.

A MAC PDU may contain at most one MAC BSR control element, even whenmultiple events trigger a BSR by the time a BSR can be transmitted inwhich case the Regular BSR and the Periodic BSR shall have precedenceover the padding BSR.

The UE may restart retxBSR-Timer upon indication of a grant fortransmission of new data on any UL-SCH.

All triggered BSRs may be cancelled in case UL grants in this subframecan accommodate all pending data available for transmission but is notsufficient to additionally accommodate the BSR MAC control element plusits subheader. All triggered BSRs shall be cancelled when a BSR isincluded in a MAC PDU for transmission.

The UE shall transmit at most one Regular/Periodic BSR in a TTI. If theUE is requested to transmit multiple MAC PDUs in a TTI, it may include apadding BSR in any of the MAC PDUs which do not contain aRegular/Periodic BSR.

All BSRs transmitted in a TTI always reflect the buffer status after allMAC PDUs have been built for this TTI. Each LCG shall report at the mostone buffer status value per TTI and this value shall be reported in allBSRs reporting buffer status for this LCG.

The PDCP entity indicates data available for transmission in PDCP (DATP)to the MAC entity when there is change in DATP (or every TTI). Based onthe change in DATP, the MAC entity may trigger BSR if triggeringcondition is met, e.g. if DATP is changed from 0 to finite value.

For UL split bearers in Rel-12 of 3GPP, the UE indicates the DATP toonly one MAC entity depending on the configuration(ul-DataSplitDRB-ViaSCG). For the other MAC entity, the UE does notindicate DATP at all.

In Rel-13 of 3GPP, indication behavior of the PDCP entity is changed dueto the introduction of threshold, as shown below.

If the PDCP data amount is the threshold, both MAC entities triggersBSRs and if the PDCP data amount is less than threshold, only one MACentity triggers BSR. If ul-DataSplitDRB-ViaSCG is set to TRUE by upperlayer, the PDCP entity indicates DATP to the MAC entity configured forSCG only. And else, the PDCP entity indicates DATP to the MAC entityconfigured for MCG only.

The threshold is configured per radio bearer. Thus, the thresholdapplies to UL data becoming available in PDCP only.

The PDCP entity is indicated by ul-DataSplitDRB-ViaSCG-r12 to which theeNB UE shall trigger BSR when PDCP data amount is less than thethreshold. The PDCP entity reports a buffer status for UL bearer splitonly towards the eNB indicated by ul-DataSplitDRB-ViaSCG-r12 when PDCPdata amount is less than the threshold. In this case, the PDCP entityreports the buffer status for UL bearer split towards the both eNBs whenPDCP data amount is above the threshold. The PDCP entity transmits aPDCP PDU for UL bearer split only towards the eNB indicated byul-DataSplitDRB-ViaSCG-r12 when PDCP data amount is less than thethreshold. BSR triggering, Buffer Size calculation, and datatransmission can be aligned.

There are 6 cases to be considered regarding the introduction of thethreshold.

Case 1 is a case of an arriving PDCP SDU when there is empty buffer, andan amount of the PDCP SDU (X) is less than the threshold. According toabove conclusion, a S-MAC triggers BSR (because,ul-DataSplitDRB-ViaSCG-r12 indicates the S-MAC), a PDCP indicates X tothe S-MAC, ‘X’ is reported for buffer status calculation in S-MAC, and‘0’ is reported for buffer status calculation in M-MAC.

Case 2 is a case of an arriving PDCP SDU when there is empty buffer, andan amount of the PDCP SDU (X) is larger than the threshold. M-MAC andS-MAC triggers a BSR, respectively, PDCP indicates ‘X’ to both M-MAC andS-MAC. And ‘X’ is reported for buffer status calculation in S-MAC, and‘X’ is reported for buffer status calculation in M-MAC.

Case 3 is a case of an arriving PDCP SDU (X) when an amount of data inPDCP buffer (Y) was less than a threshold, and an amount of data in thePDCP buffer (X+Y) is less than the threshold yet. In this case the UEdoesn't trigger a BSR.

Case 4 is a case of an arriving PDCP SDU (X) when an amount of data inPDCP buffer (Y) is less than the threshold, and an amount of data in thePDCP buffer (X+Y) becomes larger than the threshold. In this case thePDCP entity indicates X+Y to M-MAC.

Case 5 is a case of an arriving PDCP SDU (X) when an amount of data inPDCP buffer (Y) is larger than the threshold, and an amount of data inthe PDCP buffer (X+Y) is larger than the threshold also. And case 6 isthat an amount of data in PDCP entity changes from a value less than thethreshold to a value of larger than the threshold. In the both of case 5and case 6, the UE doesn't trigger a BSR.

FIG. 12 is an example of problematic situation for PDCP data indicationto MAC entity in UL split bearer.

Regarding FIG. 12, let assume that the threshold (TH) is set to 700bytes. The problem is that when the DATP is less than TH, the PDCPentity indicates the DATP only to the MAC entity to which theul-DataSplitDRB-ViaSCG is configured (let's call it X-MAC), and the PDCPentity does not indicate the DATP to the MAC entity to which theul-DataSplitDRB-ViaSCG is not configured (let's call it Y-MAC).

At t=t1, the PDCP entity receives SDU1 with 900 bytes from the upperlayer. The PDCP entity indicates 900 bytes to both X-MAC and Y-MACentities, and both X-MAC and Y-MAC triggers BSRs because the buffer sizechanges from 0 to 900.

At t=t2, the XeNB and/or YeNB provides UL grants, and the UE transmitsthe part of PDCP SDU1 to the XeNB and/or YeNB. The DATP becomes 500, andthe PDCP entity indicates 500 to only the X-MAC entity because the DATPis less than TH.

At t=t3, the PDCP entity receives SDU2 with 700 bytes from the upperlayer. The PDCP entity indicates DATP=1200 bytes to both X-MAC and Y-MACentities. In this case, the YMAC entity does not trigger a BSR becausethe YMAC entity considers that the buffer size is changed from 900 to1200.

Then, from the Y-MAC perspective, the Y-MAC is not indicated of DATPwhen the DATP becomes zero, and the YMAC would not trigger a BSR whenthe DATP becomes above TH.

FIG. 13 is a conceptual diagram for triggering a buffer status reportingin dual connectivity according to embodiments of the present invention.

To resolve above-mentioned problem, it is invented that, for UL splitbearer in Dual Connectivity, when the amount of data available fortransmission in PDCP (DATP) is lower than (or equal to) the threshold(TH), the PDCP entity indicates the amount of DATP as ZERO to the MACentity which is configured not to transmit the PDCP PDU when the amountof DATP is lower than (or equal to) TH (hereafter called second MAC orY-MAC), and the PDCP entity indicates the amount of DATP as it is to theMAC entity which is configured to transmit the PDCP PDU when the amountof DATP is lower than (or equal to) TH (hereafter called first MAC orX-MAC).

The PDCP entity is associated with a first RLC entity and a first MACentity for a first eNB and a second RLC entity and a second MAC entityfor a second eNB for a radio bearer.

Preferably, the radio bearer is a split bearer for a Dual Connectivity.

When the PDCP entity is configured with a threshold value (S1301), thePDCP entity may provide indication to the YMAC entity only when theamount of DATP is changed across TH, i.e. from DATP>=TH to DATP<TH, orfrom DATP<TH to DATP>=TH.

Further, the PDCP entity can be configured to indicate that an uplinkdata in PDCP entity should be transmitted to the first RLC entity (orfirst eNB) if the amount of uplink data available for transmission inthe PDCP entity is less than the threshold value (S1303).

For example, if ul-DataSplitDRB-ViaSCG is set to TRUE by the upperlayer, the PDCP entity can indicate the data available for transmissionto the MAC entity configured for SCG only if the amount of uplink dataavailable for transmission in the PDCP entity is less than the thresholdvalue.

Preferably, the first RLC entity and the first MAC entity are for aSeNB.

When an uplink data becomes available for transmission in the PDCPentity, the PDCP entity can check whether an amount of an uplink dataavailable for transmission in the PDCP entity is less than the thresholdvalue (S1305).

If the amount of uplink data available for transmission in the PDCPentity is less than the threshold value, the PDCP entity indicates thatthe amount of the uplink data available for transmission in the PDCPentity is ‘0’ to the second MAC entity (or Y-MAC) (S1307). And the PDCPentity indicates that the amount of the uplink data available fortransmission in the PDCP entity to the first MAC entity (or X-MAC)(S1309).

Preferably, the second RLC entity and the second MAC entity are for aMeNB.

If the amount of uplink data available for transmission in the PDCPentity is larger than the threshold value, the PDCP entity indicatesthat the amount of the uplink data available for transmission in thePDCP entity to the first MAC entity and the second MAC entity (S1311).

When the Y-MAC receives indication from the PDCP entity with DATP>zero,the Y-MAC triggers a BSR if the last indication of DATP from the PDCPentity was zero. If the last indication of DATP from the PDCP entity wasnot zero (i.e. larger than zero), the Y-MAC entity does not trigger aBSR. When the YMAC receives indication from the PDCP entity thatDATP=zero, the YMAC does not trigger a BSR.

In the step of S1307, a second MAC entity receives from an upper entitya first indication indicating that a first amount of uplink dataavailable for transmission in the upper entity is ‘0’, if the firstamount of uplink data available for transmission in the upper entity isless than a threshold value. The first indication indicates that anamount of uplink data available for transmission in the upper entitywhich is less than a threshold value is ‘0’. When the second MAC entityreceives a second indication indicating a second amount of uplink dataavailable for transmission in the upper entity, if the second amount ofuplink data available for transmission in the upper entity is largerthan or equal to the threshold value, the second MAC entity can triggera BSR. The second indication indicates that an amount of uplink dataavailable for transmission in the upper entity which is larger than thethreshold value.

Preferably, if the second MAC entity receives from an upper entity afirst indication indicating that an amount of uplink data available fortransmission in the upper entity which is less than a threshold value is‘0’, the amount of the uplink data available for transmission in theupper entity which is less than a threshold value is not zero. Thus, thefirst MAC entity may receive an indication indicating that the amount ofuplink data available for transmission in the upper entity when thefirst indication is transmitted, the first MAC entity triggered the BSRalready when the indication is received.

Preferably, the threshold (TH) is configured by the eNB using RRCmessage when the UL split bearer is configured.

Preferably, the upper entity can be a PDCP entity or a RLC entity.

FIG. 14 is an example for triggering a buffer status reporting accordingto embodiments of the present invention.

Let assume that a threshold (TH) is set to 700 bytes.

At t=t1, the PDCP entity receives SDU1 with 900 bytes from the upperlayer. The PDCP entity indicates 900 bytes to both X-MAC and Y-MACentities, and both X-MAC and Y-MAC triggers BSRs because the buffer sizechanges from 0 to 900.

At t=t2, the XeNB and/or YeNB provides UL grants, and the UE transmitsthe part of PDCP SDU1 to the XeNB and/or YeNB. The DATP becomes 500which is less than TH, and the PDCP entity indicates 500 to the X-MACentity. At the same time, the PDCP entity indicates 0 to the Y-MACentity.

At t=t3, the PDCP entity receives SDU2 with 700 bytes from the upperlayer. The PDCP entity indicates DATP=1200 bytes to both X-MAC and Y-MACentities. In this case, the Y-MAC entity triggers a BSR because theY-MAC entity considers that the buffer size is changed from 0 to 1200.

A text proposal is provided below according to embodiments of thepresent invention.

For split bearers, when indicating the data available for transmissionto the MAC entity for BSR triggering and Buffer Size calculation, the UEshall:

if ul-Data SplitThreshold is configured and the data available fortransmission is larger than or equal to ul-Data SplitThreshold:

indicate the data available for transmission to both the MAC entityconfigured for SCG and the MAC entity configured for MCG;

else:

if ul-DataSplitDRB-ViaSCG is set to TRUE by upper layer:

indicate the data available for transmission to the MAC entityconfigured for SCG only;

if ul-Data SplitThreshold is configured, indicate the data available fortransmission as 0 to the MAC entity configured for MCG;

else:

indicate the data available for transmission to the MAC entityconfigured for MCG only;

if ul-DataSplitThreshold is configured, indicate the data available fortransmission as 0 to the MAC entity configured for SCG.

The dual connectivity enhancement introduces the threshold for theuplink split bearer, whereby this threshold is used by UE to evaluatewhether the data amount for transmission is large or small. If the dataamount is larger than the configured threshold, the UE sends BSR to bothMCG and SCG, i.e., the UE has the opportunity to transmit the datatowards both CGs depending on reception of UL grants. Otherwise, the UEonly sends BSR to the configured CG, thus it may transmit the data onlytoward a CG (either MCG or SCG). This mechanism for BSR trigger and datatransmission should also be considered for enhanced LTE-WLAN Aggregation(eLWA).

For eLWA, it was agreed that “LTE buffer status information will not bereported over the WLAN link”. So, the double BSR like dual connectivityis no longer necessary. However, it is still worthwhile to retain aportion of the dual connectivity concept, such that a threshold could beused to limit unnecessary BSR towards LTE, e.g., when the direction isconfigured with WLAN and the data amount is smaller than the threshold,the UE does not need to send BSR towards LTE. In addition, it shouldalso be possible to avoid unnecessary UE power consumption, e.g., whenthe direction is configured with LTE, the UE may not send the datatowards WLAN as long as the data amount is smaller than the threshold.

Thus, the direction, which the UE sends uplink data when the data amountis smaller than the threshold, should be controllable by the network(NW). This is achievable e.g. by introducing ul-DataSplitDRB-ViaWLAN asdual connectivity.

According to the mentioned above, when the data amount becomes smallerthan the threshold and the transmission direction is configured to besent to LTE, the UE shall indicate the amount of data as 0 to one of theLTE-WLAN Aggregation Adaptation Protocol (LWAAP) MAC entities which isnot configured to be sent.

The embodiments of the present invention described hereinbelow arecombinations of elements and features of the present invention. Theelements or features may be considered selective unless otherwisementioned. Each element or feature may be practiced without beingcombined with other elements or features. Further, an embodiment of thepresent invention may be constructed by combining parts of the elementsand/or features. Operation orders described in embodiments of thepresent invention may be rearranged. Some constructions of any oneembodiment may be included in another embodiment and may be replacedwith corresponding constructions of another embodiment. It is obvious tothose skilled in the art that claims that are not explicitly cited ineach other in the appended claims may be presented in combination as anembodiment of the present invention or included as a new claim bysubsequent amendment after the application is filed.

In the embodiments of the present invention, a specific operationdescribed as performed by the BS may be performed by an upper node ofthe BS. Namely, it is apparent that, in a network comprised of aplurality of network nodes including a BS, various operations performedfor communication with an MS may be performed by the BS, or networknodes other than the BS. The term ‘eNB’ may be replaced with the term‘fixed station’, ‘Node B’, ‘Base Station (BS)’, ‘access point’, etc.

The above-described embodiments may be implemented by various means, forexample, by hardware, firmware, software, or a combination thereof.

In a hardware configuration, the method according to the embodiments ofthe present invention may be implemented by one or more ApplicationSpecific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), Digital Signal Processors (DSPs),Digital Signal Processing Devices (DSPDs), Programmable Logic Devices(PLDs), Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), processors, controllers,microcontrollers, or microprocessors.

In a firmware or software configuration, the method according to theembodiments of the present invention may be implemented in the form ofmodules, procedures, functions, etc. performing the above-describedfunctions or operations. Software code may be stored in a memory unitand executed by a processor. The memory unit may be located at theinterior or exterior of the processor and may transmit and receive datato and from the processor via various known means.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the present invention maybe carried out in other specific ways than those set forth hereinwithout departing from the scope of the present invention. The aboveembodiments are therefore to be construed in all aspects as illustrativeand not restrictive. The scope of the invention should be determined bythe appended claims, not by the above description, and all changescoming within the meaning of the appended claims are intended to beembraced therein.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for a user equipment (UE) operating in awireless communication system, the method comprising: configuring athreshold value for a Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) entityassociated with a first MAC entity for a first eNB and a second MACentity for a second eNB for a radio bearer; checking, by the PDCPentity, whether an amount of uplink data available for transmission inthe PDCP entity is less than the threshold value; and indicating, by thePDCP entity, that the amount of uplink data available for transmissionin the PDCP entity is ‘0’ to the second MAC entity, if the amount ofuplink data available for transmission in the PDCP entity is less thanthe threshold value.
 2. The method according to claim 1, furthercomprising: receiving, by the PDCP entity, information configuring thatuplink data in the PDCP entity should be transmitted to the first eNB ifthe amount of uplink data available for transmission in the PDCP entityis less than the threshold value.
 3. The method according to claim 2,further comprising: indicating, by the PDCP entity, the amount of uplinkdata available for transmission in the PDCP entity to the first MACentity if the amount of uplink data available for transmission in thePDCP entity is less than the threshold value.
 4. The method according toclaim 1, wherein the radio bearer is a split bearer.
 5. A method for auser equipment (UE) operating in a wireless communication system, themethod comprising: receiving, by a Medium Access Control (MAC) entityfrom an upper entity, a first indication indicating that a first amountof uplink data available for transmission in the upper entity is ‘0’, ifthe first amount of uplink data available for transmission in the upperentity is less than a threshold value; receiving, by the MAC entity fromthe upper entity, a second indication indicating a second amount ofuplink data available for transmission in the upper entity, if thesecond amount of uplink data available for transmission in the upperentity is larger than or equal to the threshold value; and triggering,by the MAC entity, a buffer status reporting (BSR) when the secondindication is received.
 6. The method according to claim 5, wherein thefirst amount of uplink data available for transmission in the upperentity is not zero.
 7. The method according to claim 5, wherein theupper entity is a PDCP entity or an RLC entity.
 8. The method accordingto claim 5, wherein the MAC entity is configured not to transmit theuplink data in the upper entity configured by the information if theamount of uplink data available for transmission in the upper entity isless than the threshold value.
 9. A User Equipment (UE) operating in awireless communication system, the UE comprising: a Radio Frequency (RF)module; and a processor operably coupled with the RF module andconfigured to: configure a threshold value for a Packet Data ConvergenceProtocol (PDCP) entity associated with a first MAC entity for a firsteNB and a second MAC entity for a second eNB for a radio bearer; checkwhether an amount of uplink data available for transmission in the PDCPentity is less than the threshold value; and indicate that the amount ofuplink data available for transmission in the PDCP entity is ‘0’ to thesecond MAC entity, if the amount of uplink data available fortransmission in the PDCP entity is less than the threshold value. 10.The UE according to claim 9, wherein the processor is further configuredto: receive information configuring that uplink data in the PDCP entityshould be transmitted to the first eNB entity if the amount of uplinkdata available for transmission in the PDCP entity is less than thethreshold value.
 11. The UE according to claim 9, wherein the processoris further configured to: indicate the amount of uplink data availablefor transmission in the PDCP entity to the first MAC entity if theamount of uplink data available for transmission in the PDCP entity isless than the threshold value.
 12. The UE according to claim 9, whereinthe radio bearer is a split bearer.
 13. A User Equipment (UE) operatingin a wireless communication system, the UE comprising: a Radio Frequency(RF) module; and a processor operably coupled with the RF module andconfigured to: receive, from an upper entity, a first indicationindicating that a first amount of uplink data available for transmissionin the upper entity is ‘0’, if the first amount of uplink data availablefor transmission in the upper entity is less than a threshold value;receive, from the upper entity, a second indication indicating a secondamount of uplink data available for transmission in the upper entity, ifthe second amount of uplink data available for transmission in the upperentity is larger than or equal to the threshold value; and trigger abuffer status reporting(BSR) when the second indication is received. 14.The UE according to claim 13, wherein the first amount of uplink dataavailable for transmission in the upper entity is not zero.
 15. The UEaccording to claim 13, wherein the upper entity is a PDCP entity or anRLC entity.
 16. The UE according to claim 13, wherein a MAC entity isconfigured not to transmit the uplink data in the upper entityconfigured by the information if the amount of uplink data available fortransmission in the upper entity is less than the threshold value.